AFN adviser Courchene dead at 82 – Winnipeg Free Press

OTTAWA — First Nations leaders are mourning the death of a respected Manitoba elder, who shaped numerous Indigenous policies.

Elmer Courchene, 82, died early Wednesday morning, at his home in Powerview-Pine Falls.

Courchene, a residential school survivor from Sagkeeng First Nation, advocated for language preservation and political sovereignty, to safety for Indigenous women.

As a longtime elder for the Assembly of First Nations, he advised numerous national chiefs on navigating thorny talks with Ottawa, as well as crafting policies such as the settlement agreement for residential school victims.